Secrets in the Light
by Thine Dreamer Doth Take Flight
Summary: Sequel to Secrets in the Dark. A year has passed since Rayn was put in charge of Kras City with all the gangs under her command. Cutteria and Shiv are happy together and Razer is just peachy...But then the daughter of Krew gets a crazy idea that may just end the lives of these people and Keira while completely destroying Jak's mind. CutterShiv JaKeria Crap summary better story.


_A/N: A sequel One-Shot to another of my stories, **Secrets in the Dark**. It's a different tale involving Cutteria, Shiv, and their struggles to maintain their relationship while working for a not-so-innocent Rayn in Kras City. Read on if you would like to, and thank you for giving this story a shot._

* * *

**Secrets in the Light**

"I still find it very hard to believe that you were the miserable Cutter I faced on the track," the blue-haired controller of Kras City commented as she sipped from her glass of wine, looking across the table at a dark-haired girl and her orange-haired squeeze as she did so. "You seem so…different from him. Don't get me wrong. You are still quite rude and cold like the man you were once forced to portray. But…I don't know. Maybe it just seems different because you actually have a face behind those words."

The dark-haired girl smiled. "Yes, I find it hard to look back on those days myself. Ten long years of being a man…It was hard, but it molded my personality into what it is now. I suppose there really isn't much difference between Cutter and Cutteria after all. Well, besides a few things that Shiv here quite enjoys."

"Cutteria, we shouldn't be airing such things in public," the short-eared Shiv muttered despite his own smile. He really didn't care what the people in the Bloody Hook heard of his love life with his best friend because he was second-in-command in this town and if someone had a problem with him…Well, he could just take them out.

"Well, at least you've been freed from that tragedy. What's it been…A year now since you revealed your true identity to the world?" Cutteria nodded in response to Rayn's question. "You two saved many lives that day, and that bastard Razer was finally put in his place. It was a splendid day of justice for the female gender. I have to thank you both for that since it was you who saved the day. The so-called heroes of our world didn't even need to stick their nose in our business because of you."

"Don't even think of calling us heroes for that. Kras City has no room for those. It's a town ruled by crime—that isn't about to change. We're all criminals and criminals can't be heroes, too," Shiv remarked.

Rayn's brown eyes took on a dark gleam as she absorbed what Shiv said. A small smile appeared on her lips while she placed her empty glass back on the table.

"Yes, of course," she agreed after a moment. "In regards to that, I have a new mission for you to fulfill. It involves an old friend and a pesky mechanic girl, as well as our little bastard worker in that skimpy maid costume."

"What kind of mission would involve Razer? He hasn't been in commission since we swore allegiance to you," Cutteria pointed out, a bit confused.

"Allow me to explain. Ever since you and the scraps of all other gangs swore allegiance to me, I have managed to have complete control of Kras City without any threat to my power that wasn't quickly extinguished. This city is mine to command, and thus being so we have prospered without the death toll we used to have with the power struggle of the gangs with crime lords like Mizo and my father," Rayn told them. "But such control has become quite boring. I want to expand the reach of my power into other cities, other towns, other nations. I want to have the world at my command, but in order to do that, I need more strength."

"You want more men and women in your forces so you can take over more cities? But you only mentioned two people other than Razer," Shiv put in, but he was no fool and could think this one through. "From the descriptions you gave of them, I can only come to the conclusion that their identities are Jak and Keira since he was a friend before he found out what your plans for the city were and she is a mechanic girl…and beg my pardon, Rayn, but I haven't known you to have friends beyond that little group your father forced to race for him. Jak is a great fighter with a good trigger finger, but Keira isn't much good at any of that. But even so, I doubt they would agree to help you obtain the world as you put it. And even if they did, they're just two people. I don't know how well that would work out in the larger scheme of things."

"I don't need or want that bitch. She only ever gets in the way unless some bloody piece of technology needs repair," Rayn grumbled vehemently. "No. She doesn't matter in the slightest. All I want…All I need…is Jak. As you have pointed out, he would never agree to help criminals take over the world. He is a hero…or at least he had convinced himself and his entourage that he is one. Even if he thought of helping me, that bitch Keira would talk him out of it. So in order to get him to come to me…She needs to be…taken out of the picture.

"Your mission is to see to it that Keira dies," the daughter of Krew continued. "Cutteria, you are the best shot I have. You are going to venture to Haven City where they live and stake out her garage. When you can find the time to take her out where she is in sight of Jak without being seen by him, do it. He won't find out it's you because you'll be using Razer's gun and you won't leave any fingerprints behind. You'll even leave a burning cigarette behind with the gun so that he can only jump to that conclusion. He will chase Razer down to here where he'll be going to kill him, but then dear Razer will meet an unexplained end by Shiv's invisible hand, leaving Jak unfulfilled in his vendetta. That and the loss of the love of his life will make the poor man feel empty inside. That's when I'll approach him with the offer to help him find the person who took away his chance for revenge if he agrees to work for me. Then the plan can move forward."

"…Do you really think that will work?" Cutteria hesitantly asked. The way Rayn was speaking made the jade-eyed woman think that Krew's daughter had a different motive for all this, that she wanted Jak for more than a minion in taking over the world, but Cutteria knew better than to voice such suspicions now. Rayn was her boss now and if she said anything to set her off it might mean the end of her life.

Rayn smiled again, an expression that did not deter the thoughts in Cutteria's head in the slightest. "Of course I do. I only believe in things that are true. He may be a powerful man with many special abilities given to him by the Precursors themselves, but he is still a man. When Jak watches the love of his life get shot down in front of him, he won't be himself. He'll be broken, lost, unable to think straight. A broken man will not be able to guide himself and thus will be easier to control regardless of what title he held beforehand." The look in her eyes confirmed what the other woman had suspected all along as Rayn added, "And then he'll be mine to use as I please."

"It seems a bit risky. There are so many factors and uncontrollable outcomes. What if one of Jak's friends sees Cutteria? Even if they don't see her shoot Keira, they might become suspicious of her presence, and then when Keira is killed Jak won't just assume Razer was responsible. He'll think she was, or worse, he'll think we're all responsible and hunt us all down," Shiv remarked—he was actually taking the time to analyze this whole scenario unlike Rayn, who was too concerned with getting Jak under her control, and Cutteria, who was worried about Rayn's motives. "That is just one thing that might go wrong. You need to remember that Keira is not the only one with the power to sway Jak one way or another. He has many friends who could talk him out of his vendetta, not to mention Keira's father Samos. They could act against your plan to keep him from doing what you want. Or worse…They could help him and thus not give us the chance to take out Razer as you want us to do."

"Are you quite finished now?" Rayn demanded with a fierce scowl.

"Forgive me, Rayn, but I believe you need to think this plan through a bit more before you send Cutteria off into Haven City," Shiv explained as apologetically as a man like him could without losing dignity.

"I'll have you know that I've thought this through very well! It's all I've thought about since Kras City became mine!" Rayn snapped, slamming her wine glass onto the table so hard it actually ended up shattering.

"Calm down, Rayn. We…We just need time to think about this and prepare for the mission," Cutteria said quickly, trying to ease the tension in the air. "Give me and Shiv tonight to go over the plan and then we'll come back to you in the morning with our answer. All right?"

Crossing her arms without losing her scowl, Rayn turned her bitter gaze from the duo. "Fine. You're dismissed. Just remember who's in charge here and don't disappoint me."

* * *

Cutteria and Shiv returned to the mansion that had once belonged to Razer after their confrontation with Rayn, both concerned about the mission that blue-haired chick had assigned to them. Edje was in the garage working on his car, so he did not pay them any attention and thus he wouldn't know there was something amiss. With his small mind and slow brain, it was probably for the better that he was kept in the dark. Trying to think through something this complex with him asking dumb questions would just irritate the duo more than it would on its own.

In the mansion civil servants went about their duties as usual. All but one were fully clothed and all right with their work. That one who was forced to wear the skimpy maid outfit he used to force on the female civil servants was still suffering for years of mistreatment to women and would continue to endure the punishment until Shiv and Cutteria decided he had been through enough. The dark-haired man glared at the duo as they entered the living room, but was quick to return to dusting before they could bark at him. He had learned to hate from the shadows over the course of this past year—he was no idiot despite being a sexist bastard.

They passed him and went up to the third floor into the room that had once belonged to Cutteria when she was forced to be a man. Here was where they could discuss Rayn's business privately without anyone overhearing since they were all on lower floors. It was still as bare as it had been before, but bareness meant it would be easier to find any bugs Razer might have planted to listen in or Rayn put in to uncover any plotting against her. The duo made a quick sweep of the room, found a couple of bugs that could have been from either untrustworthy party, and destroyed them. Only when they were sure that they couldn't be overheard did they actually speak.

"Rayn is a dumbass," Shiv grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest as Cutteria sat down on her old bed of which she hadn't inhabited since her true identity was revealed.

"More like she's driven by her loins instead of her head. She wants Jak for reasons beyond his abilities, there's no doubt. That's probably the real reason she wants me to take out Keira because if that blue girl is out of the way, that'll put our hero back on the market. Horny little bitch is trying to put our lives in danger just so she has a possibility of getting laid by Jak," Cutteria muttered with a shake of her head.

"You got that from her, too, huh? She can't hide that burning inside her very well at all… I bet even Edje could have come to that conclusion if he had been with us," Shiv said.

"We shouldn't do this. It's too risky and there are far too many things that could go wrong. You said so yourself. Besides, we promised Jak that we would keep away from Haven City and the Wastelands since he and his did not interfere with our affairs. We can't just go back on our word because Rayn wants to get in his pants. The word of a crime lord can never be taken back. People die when they try to take back what they've said. I'll be damned if I let myself become a liar and then die over something this impossible," Cutteria declared. "…You agree with me, don't you?"

Shiv sighed. "Of course I do, Cutteria. Going back on a promise is death to people like us and this plan is likely to blow up in our faces if we try it. However, it isn't really for us to decide whether it's right or wrong to carry this out. We swore our allegiance to Rayn. She has the power over us just like she has power over this entire city. If we turn down her mission, she won't accept it gracefully, especially since that'd be pretty much denying her the chance to get laid. No. She'll send people to kill us when we least expect it. We may be her best fighters, but if we show that we're not loyal then she won't hesitate to take us out. Razer would have done the same."

"…But…I don't like this. Killing an innocent little girl for no reason other than she's with the man our boss wants in her…Destroying his life in a single moment…Even for criminals, this seems a bit extreme," Cutteria pointed out, showing that she had a conscience underneath that hard outlaw exterior. "And what of Razer? I mean, sure, the jackass is a sexist pig who treated me like shit just because I'm a girl. But…He was our boss for a decade, and beyond the making me like a man he wasn't all that bad. Can we really frame him for Keira's murder just like that?"

"We have no choice," was the ginger's reply.

Cutteria scowled. "Is that your response to everything? Do you just accept everything Rayn says and that's it? You never used to be this easy-going! Razer could never say a word without you questioning him about it! He was just as likely to kill you as this dumb broad is! What the hell has gotten into you?"

"Dumbass! Don't you see there's much more to lose now than there was back then? When it was just the three of us as friends and subordinates to Razer, we were just friends and had nothing to lose and everything to gain! I'd have lost nothing if he chose to put a bullet between my eyes for shooting my mouth off! But things aren't that simple anymore, now are they?" Shiv growled. "Cutteria, if we don't accept this mission and Ray comes after us, I have every damn thing in this world to lose! If something were to happen to you I wouldn't be able to live with myself! Don't you understand? That's why we have to accept this mission!"

"I could just as easily die doing this as I could if I didn't!" Cutteria snapped, shoving Shiv away when he got in her face and turning her back to him.

"The chances of you dying at Jak or his idiotic entourage's hands is nowhere near as great as the chances of you dying if we refuse to do what Rayn wants!" Shiv countered.

He roughly gripped her shoulder in a poor attempt to get her to look at him, but she just grabbed his arm and twisted it until he pulled back. She clearly did not want to do this pointless assignment where innocent blood would be shed and their former boss would take the fall. Shiv did not like making her do things she didn't want to do. He just couldn't see another way. Death was knocking at their door either way, and after all this time with his best friend in her true form, he couldn't afford to lose her. The best chance to escape death was doing what Rayn wanted. Cutteria had to understand that.

"Tell that bitch whatever you want in the morning," Cutteria hissed, standing and brushing past him towards the door without looking at him. "Do whatever the hell you think is best, cuz obviously the shit I spew isn't enough to make you change your damn mind." Her fiery green eyes turned on him when she stood just outside the door, and he knew right away she would not be anywhere near him for the rest of the night. "If you think my life is worth more than that of the innocent or the heart of a hero, then you are not the man I thought you were when I gave myself to you. You're nothing more than a dog following the orders of a bitch you see as stronger. When will you pull your head out of your ass and realize what I realized long ago? Dumbass…Why did I ever fall for you?"

And then she slammed the door and briskly walked away, leaving Shiv fuming.

Normally he would have pursued her and cut her down for insulting him as she had, but he did not have it in him to fight her. Hell, he wasn't in the mood for arguing with her tonight. Arguing would just end with them hating each other now whereas any other time over any other topic it might have led to some pretty awesome angry sex. Cutteria was set in her ways on this and wasn't about to change her mind—Shiv felt likewise about this. He believed following orders was the best way to secure their lives; she felt keeping her word and sparing the lives of the innocent was more important. She wasn't wrong. It would be morally best to turn down such an assignment. But morals held little place in a city ruled by crime, and so he had to do what was best for them.

He had to take on Rayn's pointless mission even if it meant Cutteria would forever resent him because this was the only way they could stay alive.

_So much for this, _Shiv thought bitterly, pulling a velveteen box from his pants pocket and looking inside at the ring he had picked out for the dark-haired girl. _With the way she is now and how she reacted to this whole thing…I doubt she'd ever say yes._ He closed the box and shut his eyes, clasping his hands together with the small thing between them and resting his forehead against them. _At least I can still see her alive this way. Even if she decides to leave me…At least she'll still be alive._

* * *

Shiv told Rayn that they would do the mission, but he did so alone. Cutteria refused to come anywhere near him. She relayed through Edje that she would do her part in this just fine, but she would never be happy about it nor would she forgive him for putting her life above her beliefs. Of course Rayn didn't need to know that the lady she was sending to take out the competition didn't feel right about doing it, so Shiv lied when asked of Cutteria's absence and said the poor girl was suffering from a hangover from too much drinking the previous night. Rayn either believed him or didn't care enough to consider if he was lying because his acceptance meant she was one step closer to getting Jak. She gave them a week in which to be in Haven City and no longer. Traveling there would take but a day or two, giving Cutteria plenty of time to prepare.

She was searching through Razer's Havoc V-12 for his gun and a pack of cigarettes in the garage, knowing that despite her animosity towards this mission she would have to do it well or else she really would be dead. His car and belongings hadn't been touched since he was forced into the position of civil servant—he wasn't allowed to have his stuff back and no one was allowed to have it, either—so it should have all been in there. It was just a matter of finding it without having to get in the car. Cutteria knew Razer had had many ladies in his past and thus might have contracted something while plowing his conquests. Because of that, she didn't want to touch anything his lower half or the lower halves of any of his ladies may have touched even though she was wearing a pair of rubber gloves for fear she might somehow get a disease. That was also why even now he was not allowed to sit down on anything in their mansion…

"Looking for something?" the familiar voice of her former boss asked from behind the dark-haired woman.

Cutteria pulled her arm out of the Havoc V-12 and turned to look at Razer. The sight of him in that skimpy outfit used to make her smirk, but she had long since gotten used to it. Even if she hadn't, she was in no mood to smile or laugh or do anything cheerful. This plot of Rayn's really irked her to the point that there was no room in her mind or heart for anything joyful. Her eyes rested on the gun in his bare right hand and the box of cigarettes in his other bare hand, the very things she had been looking for.

"Why do you have those things?" Cutteria asked coldly.

"Don't play coy with me, darling. I know when I'm being set up for something," Razer replied just as coolly.

"…How would you know that? We haven't even told Edje," Cutteria muttered, leaning apprehensively against the side of Razer's car.

"I have my ways. You didn't honestly think I lost all my power after you and Shiv knocked me down, did you?" Razer inquired with a sneer. He tossed the unloaded Blaster and the unopened box at Cutteria's feet. "Yes, I know all about our horny little diva's plan that's supposed to end with Jak as her obedient little love-puppy and me pushing up daises. I also know how you feel about it and the unrest it has placed between my former right-hand man and best fighter."

"That is personal, so keep your nose out of it," Cutteria growled. "…If you've known, then why not put bullets in that gun of yours and take me out now? That would keep me from doing this whole damn thing and save your worthless ass while also taking out one of your nuisances all at once. Why the hell wouldn't you do that?"

Razer smiled. "Don't think I haven't considered that option, Cutter. As much as I would love to take you out and hurt Shiv by doing so, such an action would not save my life. In fact, it would cut it even shorter. People would realize who ended you rather quickly and then it wouldn't be too long before Rayn or Shiv or both put a bullet in my head. You may have made my life a living hell by forcing me into this demeaning outfit and making me your servant as well as Edje's plaything, but I'd rather be alive and plotting against you than dead and unable to get my revenge." He held up a finger before Cutteria could speak. "But before we continue this conversation of ours, I suggest a change of scenery. You never know who could be listening and from where."

"We can't go anywhere else. Not with you dressed like that," Cutteria grumbled. It wasn't that she cared about Razer's image or dignity; rather, it was her own that she was concerned about since being seen in public with him like this would tarnish the reputation she had been building for herself. She sighed. "…Shiv may not approve of this, but I'm too pissed at him to care what he thinks. Razer, you don't deserve this shortening of sentence I'm giving you at all, so you'd better be damn grateful for it. Go change into your old clothes and meet me outside in five. You can lead us somewhere we can talk that won't risk us being overheard."

"Check the cars for bugs while I'm gone. They could be anywhere, so it's better to be safe than sorry," Razer advised as he left the garage to do as Cutteria told him.

Stuffing his gun and cigarettes in Razer's old weapons-locker, Cutteria then turned to checking his car for electrical devices that might let someone listen in on them. She managed to find a few in places some might not expect and destroyed the devices in her bare hand. Her new car was also slightly bugged and easily cleared. Cutteria hated having to do this to ensure privacy, but it was necessary to keep secrets around this place. She tossed her rubber gloves into the trash now that they weren't needed and jumped into her vehicle. The engine roared to life, reminding her of days when crime didn't result in the bloodshed of the innocent just so someone could get laid and things were so much simpler and she wasn't a she. Things had changed now, some for the better and some for the worse, and Cutteria really didn't like it.

The garage door rose to let her exit. She drove forward until she was just outside the garage where she waited patiently for Razer to come. The Havoc roared to mirror her own Road Blade behind her just before it pulled up alongside her vehicle. It was strange seeing Razer back in his red coat and black slacks, but at the same time it was also nostalgic…and he did look better in his usual clothes than that stupid little maid costume, anyway. He exchanged glances with her before taking off ahead, leading the way to privacy so they could discuss Rayn's plot for his death. Cutteria followed him with little hesitation; Razer might be an arrogant sexist pig, but he wasn't an idiot and she trusted him to lead as he had done in the past.

He drove until he reached the outskirts of Kras City where nature was starting to take over the cityscape. No one usually came this far unless they were passing through; it would be safe to talk here for sure. They parked their cars and got out of them, staring at each other all the while. Cutteria had a thought in the back of her mind that he might have brought her all the way out here to kill her quietly despite what he had said earlier and she suspected he might have thought she planned on killing him here and now himself. She did have her Vulcan Furies in her Road Blade, but she had no intention of using them unless he gave her a reason. She just hoped he wouldn't think to try using them on her because she didn't want him to die…

_Did I seriously just think that? Damn I'm getting soft, _Cutteria thought bitterly.

"Do you have a light? I haven't smoked in over a year and it's been killing me," Razer said, leaning against his car as casually as he used to and reminding Cutteria of the good days once again.

"…Yeah. I still have some left," Cutteria replied, fishing the box of cigs from her glove compartment. She had bought them out of habit of having to have some on her for the boss and just kept them—after all, she had wasted money on them so throwing them out would be throwing out her money. She pulled one out along with a lighter and tossed them to the green-eyed man. "Just try to keep the smoke outta my face or else this recess of yours will be cut even shorter."

"Don't get your panties in a bunch, Cutter. I know my boundaries," Razer assured her. He took a long drag on his cig and puffed out the smoke in a way that it wouldn't blow in Cutteria's face. "…Thank you for this. I may not have treated you great before, but…you were and are useful."

"…Never though I'd hear you say that," Cutteria admitted reluctantly.

"So, what do you plan on doing about Rayn's assignment? From what it sounds like, you don't want to kill that little mechanic girl and frame me for it. I never suspected you would have reserves about killing someone with the career you've chosen for yourself in this town," Razer commented.

"…It's not that I wouldn't kill her. It's just that it's for all the wrong reasons. Keira is no threat to us or this city. The only reason Rayn wants her dead is so she can have the slightest shot at getting him in her bed. And then she has this desire to frame you which I can't understand…" Cutteria trailed off, unsure of where she was going with this.

"Ah, yes. That. Well you see, my dear, what Rayn is feeling for that pesky Jak character she once felt for me. When I was forced under her power, it wasn't just Edje using me for midnight pleasures in that little costume," Razer revealed with great distain. "She had her way with me whenever she could without you or Shiv seeing her sneak in the mansion. I suppose she grew bored of my indifference to her actions on my body…I never met a woman with a body like that that I didn't want to be inside before, but I didn't want her so I didn't have her if you get my drift. My indifference in the bedroom has turned her against me and towards the hero, so she would rather me be dead for not 'appreciating' her more than live and remind her of what I didn't do. Makes little sense to me, but good luck convincing that broad that she isn't insane." He took another drag on his cig, savoring it like an addict reintroduced to his favorite drug. "But the long and short of it is, if you go through with this, I will end up just another body on the streets of this now sham of a town called Kras City. So the question now stands…Are you willing to set me up for death?"

Cutteria sighed and contemplated this for a moment before answering him. "…I do have my reasons for hating you. You made me deny who I was just to keep face as a womanizing hotshot, took away any chance I had to start life elsewhere, and made it impossible for me and Shiv to ever have a family. I doubt you regret any of it even now …But I do. I haven't been able to live my life until after you were thrown out of power. To you, I was and am just Cutter and never me. I have it in me to want you dead…"

"And?" Razer prompted with a raised eyebrow.

"And I still don't want you to die," Cutteria continued reluctantly. "Though you did mistreat me, you gave me a place in this world. I had a home, friends, a life to live…I had everything I didn't have before I met you. True, it wasn't really my life…But it was close enough. You never made business decisions based off of your physical needs—you kept business and personal mostly separate—and led better than even your own boss. Working for you…It was mostly the best days of my life. That's why you shouldn't have to be ended like this. This death isn't fitting to be the end of the great Razer." The dark-haired woman groaned and turned her back on her former boss, gripping the side of her car as if it might have the power to change things. "…I wish things could go back to the way they were…Even if it meant I couldn't be myself, I'd rather be forced to be a man again than have to wonder if someone is listening in on me or having to do pointless missions that spill the blood of citizens just so Rayn can have her way."

"Hmm. I didn't realize you appreciated me that much," Razer remarked in a cocky tone. "It's a little late for regrets, considering how far we've come since those days…But I do have a few of my own. It was wrong for me to put you through all of that just to keep face…A girl in my ranks would not have gone over well with Mizo, either." He smiled when he saw the look on Cutteria's face. "Yes, that's right. Even that buffoon had no idea you were really a woman. He was just as clueless as everyone else, and it was for the better. If he or Edje or Shiv had known what you were when you came into the group… Well, I doubt it would have been a pleasant ride for you. Edje would have been harmless, what with his unhealthy obsession with me…But the others…"

Cutteria paled. "…I hadn't thought of that."

"In a sense, it is better that everything it turned out the way it did. If you had been a woman from the beginning, Mizo and Shiv's misuse of you would have destroyed you and your skills. You never would have made as much progress as you had as Cutter and thus would never have been my best fighter. You probably would have died long ago." Razer paused as he flicked some ashes from his cigarette, never looking directly at Cutteria but keeping her in sight from the corner of his green eyes. "Being a man protected you from the harm you otherwise would have endured. It allowed you to live a life and become the strong woman you are now…as well as develop that crush on our ginger friend."

The dark-haired woman turned red as she spun around to glare at him. "I did not have a crush on Shiv!"

"Who are you trying to fool, Cutter? If you didn't have a crush on him, you wouldn't have let him conquest you that night he discovered you were a woman. You may have been best friends as men, but you always wanted a bit more from him, more that you could never get when pretending to be a man. You know I'm right," Razer said.

"Well, it doesn't matter anymore, now does it? I don't want that bastard after he so willingly follows the damned commands of this dumb bitch Rayn like a loyal little crocadog! After this mission, I'm through with him and I'm through with that broad!" Cutteria snapped.

Razer sneered. "You don't mean that."

"Who the hell are you to tell me what I mean?" Cutteria hissed.

"I know you, Cutter, whether you like it or not. You love that short-eared brute; it's sickening to watch you two together. That love is the reason Shiv is at Rayn's beck and call. He knows if he disobeys that wench she'll kill you and he doesn't want to lose you. That lovesick crocadog only has you at heart. Any other girl would be glad for that."

"But I'm not any other girl. I don't believe my life is worth more than people who keep their noses clean, and especially not more than the hero of the universe's sanity. Hell, if I do everything Rayn wants and her plan actually goes as she expects, the whole world is going to suffer for it."

"So, what do you plan on doing, dearest Cutter?"

Cutteria thought about it for a moment. She could go against her feelings and do what both Rayn and Shiv wanted for her to do, which was kill Keira and ruin lives of citizens in another city where she had promised not to bring crime as well as frame Razer and bring about his end, or she could go against them and face death along with the loss of he who she held in her heart. These were the two options she had, and neither was really favorable to her survival. She was probably going to die either way she went. The only other thing she could do was create a third option that no one would expect.

"Razer, I want you to get the hell outta town," Cutteria told him, looking him right in the eye so he'd see she was serious. "Shit is gonna go down between me and Rayn and I'd rather not have you in the line of fire. I'm going to do what I think is right here regardless of what anyone else wants or thinks, and at the end of it all Rayn will be out of the job. Kras City will need someone to pick up the pieces after it's over—I'm not sure I'll be around to do it myself. When you get word of Rayn's fall from power, return to the city and claim it as your own. Lead it like you once led me and the others. Just don't stay here now to see how things play out, for your sake as well as mine."

The dark-haired man nodded as he dropped his cig to the ground and stomped on it. "You chose the wrong career to be applying morals to, Cutteria, but even so, you would make a brilliant crime lord if you had the chance. Before we part ways, though, there is something you should know."

"What?" Cutteria asked, surprised by his actually using her real name for once.

"Shiv was going to propose to you before Rayn assigned you this task. He's never thought about such a thing before, which means that ginger really has you in his heart. Do not take that lightly," Razer advised. "Whatever you do, do everything you can to stay alive for his sake as well as my own. What good is it for me to take over this town if my best gun is gone, anyway?"

Cutteria smiled. "Thanks, Razer. Take my car out of town with you. Knowing Rayn, she probably rigged yours to blow up if you ventured too far out of Kras City. Mine's newer, and she trusts me a bit more than you. It won't have any explosives. The only danger either of us will be put in is me getting whatever diseases you and your women had."

Razer scowled. "I never had any diseases, thank you very much! I only ever conquered clean women!"

"Sure, sure. That's what it looked like," Cutteria teased, but honestly she believed his outburst to be the truth. A man like him hated anything that might ruin his image. He probably got tested after every conquest to ensure he really didn't have anything, and if he did, he would have gotten treatment right away. Razer wasn't the unclean man-whore she and Shiv often called him out as. She had truly been wrong about him. She tossed him the keys to her Road Blade which he caught with ease. "Take care of yourself, and don't overwork my Furies too much, all right?"

"Don't do anything stupid, Cutteria," Razer grumbled, handing over his own keys before climbing into her vehicle.

"I'll try not to," Cutteria said as she watched him drive off.

* * *

Upon Cutteria's return home to the mansion, she was ambushed by a bunch of Rayn's men and women. Roughly pulled from Razer's Havoc V-12 and forced to the ground, she knew they knew of her secret meeting with her former boss. This would not go over well for her at all. She was surprised to find the Edje was one of the people holding her down, but he did have an apologetic look on his face. Even he did not like what Rayn made him do, but what choice did he have? Him disobeying orders was guaranteed to get him killed—after all, what use was the small-minded brunette beyond his replaceable brute strength?—so he had to struggle even harder to please that blue-haired chick to stay alive.

Rayn stepped out of the shadows and into view of the green-eyed woman on the floor. With a scowl, she kicked Cutteria in the face, something she could never have done if the dark-haired lady was not being restrained. It hurt, but pain was something any criminal could handle regardless of gender. Rayn should have known that. The brown-eyed daughter of a tub of lard knelt down beside the struggling subordinate, never losing even a hint of her animosity as she beheld one who would not follow orders loyally.

"How dare you plot against me with that miserable bastard!" Rayn exclaimed, grabbing a fistful of Cutteria's hair and pulling her head up so she could look the lackey in the eye. "I am in command here, you little bitch, and I will not have you trying to take down my power! You will do as I say or you will damn well suffer for it! Do you understand, or should I let my people rough you up a bit to make you understand?"

Cutteria spat at Rayn's face, not at all threatened by those angry words. "Death is no punishment. I'd gladly die than serve you. Shiv and I made a mistake giving power over to you that day, and one of these days that mistake will be rectified. There's nothing you can do to make me want to follow through with your plan…and there's no way in hell Jak would ever get into bed with you. He'd have to be deaf, blind, stupid, and insane to even touch your ugly ass, let alone do anything to the rest of you."

Rayn scowled and ordered Edje to punch Cutteria in the jaw. He muttered his apologies before doing as he was instructed. His blow hurt more than the blue-haired bitch's did, but Cutteria could still handle it.

"Right now, I'd like nothing better than to end your bloody life! Unfortunately, that is not an option because you're the best damn shot I have…and I need you in order to get Jak!" Rayn growled as she pulled Cutteria's hair even harder. With the hand that wasn't hurting her lackey, the crime lord pulled a device from her pocket that resembled a choker but somehow didn't seem to be for fashion purposes. She held it up so Cutteria could see it more clearly. "Since you will not follow me of your own will, I have no choice but to force you to do what I say! This choker is an explosive device designed to go off at my command! Don't even think of trying to remove it or you will lose your head because only I can remove it! If you do not take out Keira by ten four days from now, all I have to do is push a single button and you'll never be a bother to me again! Oh, and there is another thing… If this still doesn't inspire you to follow my orders, then perhaps knowing that if you still resist me Shiv dies will!"

"Leave Shiv out of this! He has nothing to do with my decisions!" Cutteria snapped, struggling even harder against the grasp of the other criminals.

The crime lord sneered, releasing the woman's dark locks and instead roughly grabbing her chin. "Ah, but he does provide the necessary leverage to get you to do what I want, now doesn't he? Go against me, and not only will you die, but so will he. This is what happens when I don't get my way, so perhaps now you won't be so quick to shoot your bloody mouth off."

Cutteria kept her angry expression despite mentally despairing as Rayn forced that deathtrap choker around her throat. She never meant to put Shiv in danger, but now his life was on the line because she wanted a way out of pointless citizen death. True, her life was in just as much danger as his, but to her the life she lived now wasn't that important. His, however, mattered much more. It didn't matter if she died just as long as he continued to be. That option was thrown off the table and this whole thing was out of her hands…

_Now I understand why he fought so hard to keep me safe…The life of the one you love matters more than your own, _Cutteria thought. _Damn it! What the hell am I going to do?_

_What am I going to do…?_

* * *

Three days later, the dark-haired green-eyed woman was in Haven City despite wishing she could be anywhere else. She would go unnoticed amongst the citizens because she was dressed just like every other female in the city with Razer's Blaster hidden within the layers of her skirt. She was a day ahead of schedule for her sake as well as Shiv's—the sooner she got this over with, the better—and thus her life wasn't in as much danger as it would be had she delayed her arrival.

Haven City had recovered well from the invasion of Metal Heads and Krimzon Bots that had happened two years ago. Kras City hadn't escaped such attacks, but the gangs had pulled together to keep their city whole. Razer's mansion was lined with Skull Gems as proof of how well they had done during that dark period. Haven City hadn't done as well, but now it looked almost as good as Cutteria's hometown. It didn't even really look like a place that had suffered through two years of war, or any years of war for that matter. It was almost peaceful…

Cutteria had a map of this city, provided to her by Rayn, so that she could find Keira's garage and then find out a place to take the blue-green-haired love of the world's hero out without being seen. She avoided contact with the Freedom Fighters, those blue-armored men that had replaced the Krimzon Guards that once worked for the Baron Praxis, and did everything she could to not draw attention to herself. Then she slipped away from the crowd and climbed up the side of the building so she could be on the roof. This building was between two taller buildings and made it so she could clearly see Keira's garage without being seen herself. She tore the seam of her skirt to take out Razer's Blaster, once again wearing gloves to prevent leaving behind any evidence of her being responsible for this crime.

All that remained now was waiting for the right moment to pull the trigger.

Even from this distance, Cutteria could see the girl working on her machines. The blue hair with tints of green always looked the same as did her green eyes, but she had changed since the last time the criminal had seen her. Her white shirt and purple pants had been replaced with a lavender strapless shirt and blue pants that extended three-fourths down her legs where they met a pair of black boots. Of course, this outfit wasn't the best to wear while doing dirty work, but Keira didn't seem to care. That not caring personality coupled with her intelligence and beauty was probably the combination that attracted Jak to her. There would never be another girl in this world like her.

_And I have to kill her, _Cutteria thought morosely.

Tears came to her eyes as she thought of what she had gotten herself into this time. Shiv was going to die and so would she if Keira wasn't killed. But even so, she couldn't help but draw parallels between their very different lives. What if she and Shiv were in Keira and Jak's place? How would they react to such a situation? Could she live with herself if she watched Keira take Shiv from her? Could Shiv survive if Jak ended her with a bullet right in front of his eyes? Could she go through with this knowing the pain they would endure from the loss of the love of their lives?

The blonde hero came onto the scene with his orange Ottsel friend on his shoulder, calling out Keira's name as he approached her worksite. The green-eyed girl pulled herself from under a Zoomer and tossed the visor from her face, ecstatic to see him. She rushed out of the garage to reach him quicker, but there was still such a distance between them…

This was Cutteria's chance.

She took aim and rested her finger on the trigger of the Blaster, prepared to do this…

But the tears and her aching heart wouldn't let her do it. Even with her life and the life of her lover on the line, she couldn't go against her morals to destroy the life and love of another couple. Cutteria, feeling worthless and broken, lowered her weapon and let it fall to the group three stories down before tossing the gloves after it. She pulled her knees up to her chest and cried, no longer able to hold in her misery as the couple embraced in front of the garage below. She just couldn't go through with this.

_We'll die and meet in the next life. That's what I have to look forward to, _ Cutteria thought miserably, but such thoughts didn't make the pain any easier. _If only this death wasn't to be so painful…_

Her crying must have been louder than she thought because when she looked down again she found that Keira, Jak, and Daxter were nowhere to be seen. Cutteria glanced the other way to find the girl standing on the ground below with the pants-wearing rodent on her shoulder while Jak climbed up after her. Cutteria silenced the sobs in her throat to the best of her ability; tears would get her no sympathy once he realized who she was. If he didn't strike her down when he realized her identity, he most certainly wouldn't trust her.

"Hey, are you okay?" the hero asked as he became level with her. He could not see her face because she had kept it buried in her knees or else he would not be asking after her well-being.

She shook her head without raising her face to his sight, hoping to keep on his good side for as long as possible. He sat beside her and she doubted he would leave her be any time soon. He was the kind that wanted to help everyone even though he couldn't even really help himself. He would even try to help her until he discovered she was not a good person in his eyes.

"Look, just tell me why you're crying and I'll do whatever I can to fix it," Jak told her, resting a gentle hand on her shoulder. "You don't have to go through this alone. My friends and I can help you."

"…No…No you can't, Jak," Cutteria sobbed—talking would not get her in trouble because he hadn't heard her real voice very much, only her filtered male voice—while still refusing to look up at him. "…You can't…You can't help me…"

"Why not?" Jak wanted to know.

"Because…Because…," Cutteria stammered and finally looked him in the eye. She watched his expression change from concern to shock to anger as he realized who she was. Despite the bruises and tears and only seeing her real face once, he did recognize her and did not like what he saw. Even so, she had to finish her statement. "…I was sent here by Rayn…to kill your lover…" The fury in Jak's eyes was unmistakable. "…But I can't …I can't do it…"

Jak's jaw was set as he stared vehemently at her. "Let's get off the roof and go somewhere that we can settle things…privately."

The way he said that last word made her believe that perhaps he intended to kill her. Death at his hands would be better than being blown apart at Rayn's command from that damn device on her neck. She nodded to show she would cooperate before moving to climb down with him. On the ground he gripped her arm tightly in case she had any plans of running away. Keira and Daxter recognized her as well and were just as distrusting of her as their blonde companion. The orange-furred wise-cracker made a ton of crude comments as the group headed towards the Headquarters of the Krimzon Guard/Freedom Fighters, comments that didn't make Cutteria feel any better about the whole thing. Try as she might, she couldn't stop the tears from falling from her eyes, either, which did manage to draw some sympathy from the lady in the group, but that was the last thing she wanted at the moment.

The tattooed leader of the new Krimzon Guard and the baroness of Haven City were pulled away from their duties to deal with this predicament. It was agreed that Samos shouldn't be involved since he was a busy old man and might react badly to hearing someone had been ordered to kill his daughter. Torn and Ashelin didn't seem too pleased by this information themselves, and they weren't even that close to Cutteria's target.

Cutteria was forced into a chair and had her wrists stuck to the armrests by metal restraints. She did not try to fight them and fell rather limply in the seat, feeling numb as the tears continued to fall from her eyes which refused to meet the accusing gazes of those around her. Fighting was pointless now when she had less than a day left of life left to her name. These people might make that time even shorter, which she preferred to the other way of dying she would have if she lasted until ten tomorrow morning.

"For a would-be assassin, you seem pretty pathetic," Ashelin commented.

"It may all be just an act. She did work for Razer, so there's no telling what kind of trick she might be pulling to win our trust," Torn pointed out.

"It was Rayn's order that brought her here. Why would that chick want Keira dead?" Daxter wanted to know, too confused and bitter to crack a joke now.

"Give us answers, Cutter. You'll make it easier for yourself that way," Jak told her in a rough tone, gripping her shoulders roughly as if that might make her cooperate.

"…You…You don't have to threaten me, Jak…I'll tell you everything…you want to know, okay? I'll tell you everything…," Cutteria murmured. "Rayn…has this crazy plan to start taking over the world…with Jak as her means of doing so. Well…that and her pleasure in the bedroom. Naturally…Keira stands in her way in both…so she wanted her opposition taken out of the picture…and put me in the position to do it. I…I am the best gun Rayn has. I was supposed to…to kill Keira when she was in sight of you…and frame Razer for it since she has her own problems with him…If you reach into my pocket, you'll find a pack of cigs that I was supposed to leave for you to find along with his Blaster so you would think it was Razer who killed her…and then you would be out for revenge and come to Kras City to finish him off. But then…Razer was supposed to be killed before you could do it so…you would be unfulfilled, broken, and ready to do anything to get at the person who thwarted you from getting your vengeance…even work for her. It's a really, really winded plan…"

"Yeah, you could say that again," Daxter agreed with a snarky tone. "So much death just for the girl to get laid? It seems to be a bit much just to get with Jak. I mean, especially to get with Jak. It's insane."

"You knew it was insane. Why were you going to do it?" Jak demanded.

"…She gave me no choice. If I don't do it by ten tomorrow…She's going to blow my head off with this device around my neck," Cutteria admitted. "And if that wasn't enough, she's going to…kill Shiv, too…"

"That bitch is crazy. I knew we shouldn't have left Kras City with her still breathing," Ashelin remarked, punching a wall in frustration.

"Can't you remove it from your neck?" Keira asked, sounding awful kind for someone who knew the person she was talking to was supposed to have killed her.

Cutteria shook her head. "If I tried, it would only make it explode."

"Why should we believe you?" Torn wanted to know as it was his place to be skeptical.

"Because I promised to keep Kras City's affairs from leaking into this city…and the word of a crime lord can never be broken," was Cutteria's reply.

The group exchanged glances, unsure of whether or not they should take her words to heart. She didn't care at this point if they believed her—if they didn't, they could just make her life and suffering shorter—and just wanted this whole thing to be done with so she wouldn't have to think about Shiv dying any longer.

"…I'll have that choker analyzed to see if there is any truth to what she says," Ashelin offered after a moment. "But the only way to do that is if the damn thing is removed, which may end up with us all turned to pink mist."

"I can test it with the stuff in my garage, and if it proves to be an explosive I'm sure I could remove it with enough time and the right tools," Keira put in.

"Keira!" Daxter exclaimed. "What do you have, rocks in ya head? This chick was sent here to kill ya! Didn't you get that, or were you sleeping when she said that?"

"It wasn't her choice. Rayn forced it on her," Keira admonished.

"You actually believe her about this?" Jak asked, surprised.

"Why shouldn't I? She had the perfect opportunity to take me out in front of you and frame Razer but she didn't. And criminals like her don't make promises and turn on them when someone like Rayn tells them to do so. I believe that she wanted to take me out, there's no denying that, but her motives weren't all bad. I mean," she said, putting a hand on Jak's arm as she looked him in the eye, "if someone told you I would die if you didn't kill someone, wouldn't you do it?"

Jak's expression softened and he took her hand in his. Keira was the last person Cutteria ever expected to come to her aid, mainly because that girl was supposed to be her target, but she was more understanding than Cutteria gave her credit for. She didn't deserve such compassion from these people; most of them would probably agree. But empathy was something that connected people in a way that could not be severed easily, and thus they could not just put her down as they have done otherwise. Every one of them had someone they loved who they would do anything if it would ensure their lovers' safety. Ashelin and Torn, Tess and Daxter, and Keira and Jak…They were all just like Cutteria and Shiv. One could not thoroughly survive without the other.

She was released from the chair, but since they still didn't fully trust her so her hands were put into cuffs behind her back. If she wanted to, Cutteria could easily slip out of the metal bracelets. Too bad she didn't want to do that. Ashelin escorted her to a Hellcat, making it her own business to watch the dark-haired criminal. Keira joined them in the vehicle despite protests because the blue-haired girl believed her friends might be a little rough with her. Torn, Daxter, and Jak piled into another of the Hellcats before the entourage set off in the direction from which four of them had just come.

Cutteria had never been in hover vehicles before. In Kras City, it was all about how well one operated a four-wheeled vehicle at insane speeds. Haven City was more for the hovering so people could move easier in the sky and on the ground. It was a strange experience, one the criminal had never thought she would go through since she never pictured herself out of her hometown, but she couldn't say she didn't like it. Moving fast without having to worry about the unevenness of the ground or traps lying in wait beneath the pavement…It seemed almost surreal. Such a feeling took her mind away from her dire situation as well as the impending death of her lover if only for a moment.

Within Keira's garage was a large array of machines, many of which Cutteria had never seen or heard of because Kras City favored racing over everything else besides crime and didn't care for new technology unless it could improve racing or help with crime. Keira offered her a seat while she searched for a gadget she said would tell if that choker was really an explosive; Ashelin practically pinned Cutteria to it as the males glowered at the untrustworthy woman. They would only avert their glares when Keira would look their way. It was strange how these people regarded her feelings despite their own protests. It was not at all the way her friends were. Razer, Edje, and even Shiv would constantly remind her what they thought of something and would never let it go for anything. These friends were not like her friends, and because of that…They seemed closer than she could ever get to anyone. Even the love of Keira and Jak seemed stronger than the love Cutteria shared with Shiv, if even just a little.

_I wish my shitty life could be like theirs…,_ Cutteria thought, admiring the lives of citizens and knowing a criminal like her could never know such a life. _They are so damn lucky._

Keira found the gadget and used it to determine that Cutteria was definitely not lying. Finding that out nearly caused the device around the criminal's throat to go off. Jak tried to talk Keira out of removing it from Cutteria, but the girl would not be deterred now that it was proven that the woman was not a liar. The garage was cleared of unnecessary people when she claimed she could work better in peace and quiet, though Jak and Daxter were very reluctant to leave their friend alone with a woman that had an explosive strapped around her neck. This left only the two women in that garage with the only sound that of Keira working on safely removing the choker from Cutteria by disarming the blasted thing.

It was a slow process for safety reasons; going fast would cut this short pretty quickly and it was better to be safe than dead. They knew they were on a deadline with ten tomorrow morning being the end point, but this couldn't be rushed. After the silence became too much, Keira prompted Cutteria to exchange life stories. Cutteria's wasn't a pretty tale, but the blue-green-haired girl found it interesting despite the gory details and seemed genuinely upset when the dark-haired woman revealed that she could never have children. Keira's life started off rather nice—she had a loving mother and a wonderful stepfather in that Green Eco Sage Samos and close friends growing up—but then became hard when she had gone through time and was separated from those she loved for two years in a strange new world. From Keira's story Cutteria got bits and pieces of Jak's and Daxter's lives, albeit much more of the former's than the latter's. These seemingly normal people—excluding Jak for obvious reasons—weren't so ordinary after all.

"Keira," Cutteria said when the sky started to brighten at about seven in the morning. The girl had been working on disarming the choker throughout the night without rest and still hadn't achieved the result that would work out the best for both of them. "If…If you can't disable it before nine, you have to take me out of the city, or at least somewhere where this explosion won't hurt anyone. If Rayn is going to kill me, it should only be me who dies because of this damn bomb."

The girl smiled. "It won't come to that."

"But if it does, promise me you won't keep trying to save my worthless ass just because you can empathize. I have lived much longer than you. You have a full life ahead of you with that hero you managed to wrap around your little finger. Don't throw that away over a scumbag like me. Promise me you won't," Cutteria insisted.

"Your ass isn't worthless, Cutteria. You spared me when it would have been just as easy to save yourself by taking me out and giving Rayn what she wanted. But…if things start looking hopeless, I promise to stop trying to free you," Keira vowed despite inner protests to such a thing.

"…Thank you."

* * *

Shiv stood beside Rayn, though it was not his choice, as they watched Razer's old Havoc V-12 return to the mansion six days after Cutteria's departure in it. The barrel of the blue-haired bitch's gun was pressed against his back out of sight, a constant reminder that if Cutteria had failed that his life would be over. Rayn hadn't killed Cutteria with the explosive device—he was ecstatic to hear that—but it didn't mean she wouldn't still kill her. Cutteria was smart and could have found a way to disable that device and thus avoided killing Keira. Shiv knew his lover could have done so easily and wouldn't have killed the hero's lady, wished she would have gone through with the job, but knew his lover too well. Her morals would have kept her from taking that life even with so much on the line. Released from her death, she could have run and never looked back, but she also wasn't a coward nor was she a deserter. She would never leave him behind; she had never done so before and he doubted she would start now.

Cutteria parked the car right in front of the duo even though it wasn't just those two present. Many of Rayn's followers were present as well, including Edje. Shiv would never label that idiot a traitor for following orders—Edje had a hard enough life as it was—but he couldn't look at him the same way anymore, either. Edje had always been the kind to do as he was told regardless of who was in charge, but the short-eared ginger thought his loyalty would overrule that. Obviously, he had been wrong. He turned his eyes away from the brunette as the dark-haired woman climbed out of the Havoc looking solemn as ever.

"Keira's dead," she grumbled bitterly, looking Rayn right in the eye without any fear, only animosity. "It'll only be a matter of time until Jak comes here looking for Razer. I hope you're happy."

Rayn grinned. "Of course I'm happy. Well, I could be happier if Razer was still here to be killed, but you let that rat go off on his own, so I have to settle a little bit. I can still say someone killed him when Jak arrives and offer to help him find the person responsible in exchange for him working for me. The plan is still in motion."

"Are you going to release Shiv now? I did what you asked, so there's no reason to be holding him at gunpoint anymore," Cutteria muttered tiredly.

"No, I don't think I will be letting your bastard go," Rayn replied, digging the barrel of her gun deeper into his back without losing her smile. "See, I'm not sure if I should believe you about Keira. Your choker is missing, and though you might have the brainpower to remove it you lack the patience. She might have removed it for you and this could all be an elaborate setup on your end. Until Jak arrives, I'm going to hold onto your little plaything to make you second-guess any schemes you had planned."

Cutteria's scowl began even angrier, if that was possible. "…You're gonna regret threatening me and Shiv, you bitch. Just you wait."

"I'm not afraid of you, you old hag. I am the one with the power here," Rayn reminded her coyly, green eyes beaming with glee as she enjoyed infuriating her little lackey.

The roar of a car engine in the distance took their attention away from each other. All gathered glanced in the direction from which Cutteria had just come, wondering who that could be. No one was expected in Kras City and no one needed to drive at the moment—citizens did not have cars and the gang members under Rayn's control had no need for them at present. That could only mean…

"Jak's here already? He's moving faster than I anticipated," Rayn remarked.

"I'd be, too, if I just watched the love of my life die in front of me and knew who was responsible," Cutteria said bitterly, glaring at Rayn once more.

"…But he doesn't know who's really responsible. He thinks it's Razer when it was you by the order of Rayn," Edje murmured, speaking for the first time and not sounding like a complete idiot for once.

"He'll never know that," Rayn declared. "He'll only know what I want him to know."

Jak's own Road Blade came into view at a blinding but understandable speed. He was hell-bent on revenge and thus couldn't care less about how fast he was going. Only one thing was on his mind and nothing could overpower it. It came to a stop outside Razer's old mansion, nearly running over many of Rayn's criminals, and the blonde-haired blue-eyed hero jumped out with his Morph Gun ready to pop off some heads. There was no kindness about him; not even his sidekick Daxter could be found. In his new quest to avenge Keira, he had left everything behind that made him who he once was.

Even seeing this darker side of Jak that was nothing like he had been when last he was in Kras City, Rayn seemed pleased. Cutteria loathed her for that, wishing she could take the gun from Jak's hand and finish this bitch off at long last. But if she even tried that, Rayn's lackeys' guns would quickly be used on her and she would be done with in an instant…and then Rayn would probably kill Shiv, too. Cursing up a storm in her head, the dark-haired criminal just stood by and waited for whatever was to happen to happen.

"Where the hell is that bastard?" Jak demanded, getting in Rayn's face without any sort of respect whatsoever.

Rayn played innocent well, mixing it with a touch of fear and a bit of confusion. "Jak, I don't know who you're talking about. Why are you in Kras City? What's wrong? What happened to you?"

"That's none of your concern!" Jak snapped. He turned his gaze to Shiv, recognizing him as one of his target's lackeys, and grabbed him by the front of his shirt. "Where did that piece of shit you call your boss go?! Where is he?!"

"He's dead," Rayn replied before Shiv could say anything. "Someone took him out as he was stepping out of his Havoc. He didn't see it coming…Poor guy. Ah well, it was an end fitting for someone like him. A coward's death for a coward. I just had some men take his body to be tossed into the water so the Lurker Sharks could make good use of his useless hide. If I had known you were coming for him, I would have left it around so you could take your anger out…Sorry, Jak."

"What?!" Jak shouted in disbelief, releasing Shiv and turning his furious gaze on her. "How can he be dead?! I followed him here! That bastard shot Keira down right in front of me! He can't be dead! Not yet! Who killed him?! Who?!"

Rayn shrugged. "We don't know. As I said, it was done the cowardly way…From the shadows. It could have been anyone."

"No! This can't be!" Jak briskly walked away from Rayn, hands gripping his hair tightly as his anger continued to consume him. But now anger was the only thing he was feeling. Misery, loss, sadness…It mingled with the anger to remind him of the pain in his heart. He fell to his knees, dropping his Morph Gun to the ground, and let out a terrible cry that cut deep into the hearts of every bystander no matter how hardened they claimed to be. After that, all Cutteria could hear him say was Keira's name over and over, and though she could not see his face from where she stood, she imagined he might be crying.

The blue-haired crime lord pulled away from Shiv and dropped her own gun, too enthralled by watching her plan work to think about anything else. That expression on her face as she looked upon the broken Jak sickened Cutteria—how could that bitch be so happy about destroying lives and crushing spirits like they were nothing?—and she had to force herself not to lose her cool and go punch that broad in the face. Shiv was out of danger now, just as Cutteria had wanted. She picked the gun off the ground and prepared for the next part of the plot.

"Jak," Rayn said, kneeling beside the supposedly broken hero and resting a hand on his trembling shoulder. "I am so sorry for your loss. What Razer did…I wish it never happened. But I promise that your vengeance will be fulfilled…If you work for me, we can find the coward that kept you from avenging Keira. We will not let her death be in vain. We will avenge her."

She expected Jak to agree to it just as she had planned, but to her surprise, the supposedly broken man was laughing at her. Rayn, genuinely confused now, pulled her hand away as Jak straightened.

"You know, that was almost believable," Jak commented, turning to face her to show that he was just fine. "But then, it wouldn't be the first time you lied right to my face."

"Wh…What are you talking about, Jak?" Rayn stammered.

"I know all about your scheme, Rayn. And you're insane for thinking it could have ever worked. I will never lower myself to work for you," Jak stated.

"Well…," Rayn grumbled, scowling. "What choice do you really have now? You are alone. You don't even have that annoying rat with you. I, however, have all these lackeys to back me up and force you to do whatever I want."

"Like hell he's alone!" the last voice Rayn wanted to hear exclaimed from behind her gang of criminals.

Rayn and her followers turned around to find Keira standing there along with Daxter, Tess, Ashelin, Torn, Sig, and a whole slew of Krimzon Guards and Wastelanders. Each one of them was armed and ready to kick some serious ass.

"How did they get here without us noticing?" Edje wondered out loud.

"Hover crafts, you idiot. They're a lot quieter than our mode of transportation," Shiv muttered, slapping the moronic brunette upside the head while seizing one of his guns.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Rayn demanded.

"The leader of Kras City has attempted to murder a citizen of Haven City outside of her jurisdiction. We do not take such an action lightly," Torn told her bluntly. "For this act of terrorism, Haven City is willing and able to go to war against this city with the aid of our allies the Wastelanders. We will destroy you and claim Kras City as our own."

"You can't! This city is mine!" Rayn shouted.

"It was never yours. You just had your head stuck so far up your ass to realize that," Shiv countered.

"It's over, Rayn," Jak declared, now holding his own gun and pointing it at her.

Rayn was obviously at a loss of what to do. Everything she had planned for had blown up in her face. Nothing had happened the way she wanted—Keira was still alive, Jak was not broken, and what belonged to her was about to be taken away. Everything had fallen apart…Everything was falling to pieces.

She spun around to face Cutteria with rage shining in her brown eyes. "You! This is all your fault! You betrayed me!"

"And why wouldn't I? You were going to kill me and Shiv. And besides, you're a terrible crime boss. Razer would have run this town better," Cutteria remarked with a sneer.

"You bitch!" Rayn charged towards her, too consumed with hatred to care that the one she was charging had a gun in her hand. Cutteria didn't even bother pulling the trigger; Rayn could be taken out easier than that. Before she could put the blue-haired broad in her place, however, Edje jumped in and grabbed Rayn from behind, putting the little lady in a headlock. She struggled against his grip and kicked and punched and screamed for him to put her down, but he would not do so. His loyalty to his friends was stronger than they had thought. Rayn stopped fighting but still had her rage and thus turned to her lackeys. "Kill them! Kill them all! Blow their bloody heads off!"

Those that were truly loyal to Rayn began shooting at the opposition with a couple running off to gather the rest of the troops. Those that were more loyal to Shiv and Cutteria shot at their former comrades, moving in with the ranks of Krimzon Guards and Wastelanders to avoid confusion. Edje was shot in the shoulder and had to let go of Rayn in order to fall back and deal with his injury. Rayn ran through the gunfire to hide behind her ranks, saving her own ass rather than taking out the opposition.

Cutteria shot as best she could with Rayn's shitty gun, but eventually gave up after a couple of failed shots and tossed the gun at the enemy. Ashelin handed her one of the red-head's Vulcan Furies, which she took graciously and started shooting off rounds into the minions. Her new goal was to make a path for her to go right at Krew's bitchy daughter; it might differ from what those from Haven City wanted, but she didn't care. The look on Praxis's daughter's face suggested that she didn't much care for what happened to Rayn, either. She had Cutteria's back in this, just like Shiv always did.

Seeing an opening, the dark-haired woman darted forward, avoiding the array of bullets by luck alone. Guns were turned on her, and to avoid them directly she slid beneath the people and between their legs. The rough pavement tore up her clothing and did cut up her flesh a little, but pain was preferable to death in most cases, this being one of those. Rayn was at their back, far enough away that no bullet would hit her but close enough to watch the battle. Her stance changed when she saw Cutteria ragged and worn but armed and dangerous getting off the ground and making an advance towards her. Running away was not an option.

Rayn and Cutteria grappled when the bitch managed to knock the gun out of the criminal's hand. Punches and kicks were blocked and delivered to each lady, though most of the hits were inflicted on Rayn because she wasn't the hardened fighter her opponent was and thus was easily outmatched. It was only a matter of time until the blue-haired lady had her back on the ground with the barrel of a Vulcan Fury against her throat and Cutteria standing at the other end of the gun. She forced Rayn to stand, keeping the gun pressed painfully into the neck of the crime lord, and pushed towards the center where both sides could see them. Their leader captured, Rayn's criminals seized fire and thus so did Krimzon Guards and Wastelanders and 'good' criminals.

"Scout the city for more troublemakers. I don't want any more uprisings now that that bitch is under control," Ashelin grumbled, sending her Krimzon Guards off in every direction in Kras City. She put her gun away as she looked at the surrendering party. "What the hell are we gonna do about these pests?"

"Don't worry about it, chili pepper. Me and mine can handle these cherries," Sig told her, gesturing at the Wastelanders to dispatch the criminals.

"Thanks, Sig," Ashelin said before turning her gaze upon Rayn. "What are we to do with this piece of trash?"

"Why you little-!" Rayn was cut off as Cutteria shoved the barely deeper into her throat.

"We should just take care of her now and be done with it," Shiv commented.

"No, that would be too easy. After all the pain she's put us through and what damage she wanted to do to these people, she doesn't deserve the easy way out," Cutteria stated. "Torn, do you think there would be a shitty little cell in your prisons for this shitty little bitch to stay for the rest of her life? I think that'll give her enough time to think about what she did wrong in her short reign as the ruler of our city."

Torn grinned and had a couple of Krimzon Guards take Rayn off her hands. "Yeah, I think I can find a place."

"Hey Cutteria…Sorry we jumped to conclusions about you before. We shouldn't have been so quick to judge you," Jak apologized, approaching her with Daxter on his shoulder and Keira at his side with Tess on hers.

"It's fine. You would have been stupid to have reacted otherwise," Cutteria assured him.

"You know, I said some downright awful things about ya, but ya ain't so bad after all," Daxter put in. "Maybe it's just your bosses that are the bad guys and we've been misjudging ya this whole time."

"No, I am bad. I just happen to be a very bad girl with really good morals," Cutteria told him, a slightly seductive smile playing on her lips as she took Shiv's hand in hers and looked up into his eyes. He wrapped his other arm around her body and squeezed her tightly as he wished he could have done all along.

"What's going to happen to Kras City now that Rayn's out of power and Haven City has taken over?" Tess asked.

"I have my hands full ruling over Haven City. I can't control two cities this far apart on my own, and Sig is busy with Spargus as well," Ashelin admitted. "Cutteria, I'd like to hand over power to you. You would still answer to me, but the major affairs of this city would be yours to handle. I wouldn't stick my nose in unless you started doing questionable things, so Kras City could be run as you like it. But you'd have to keep it clean. No crime running rampant, no plotting against my allies, nothing. You up for it?"

Cutteria smiled. "I'd like that, but I already promised to put someone else back in power when Rayn fell out."

Daxter's ears perked up. "Wait. You don't mean that bastard that dresses strangely well and has that odd sexy style, do you?" The dark-haired woman nodded and it was all he could do not to fall off his pal's shoulder. "Why the hell would you want him in charge again?! He mistreated you and tried to kill me! Hell, he made you almost kill me with that poison ya kept pouring in my cup! Why would you want someone who wants to kill the Orange Lightning to be in control of an entire city?!"

"He doesn't want to kill you anymore, and not everything is about you," Shiv grumbled.

"I have my reasons that I don't need to explain. Let's just say…Some things are better changed when they stay the same," Cutteria replied.

Ashelin sighed. "All right. Razer can be in charge, but only if you are on top as well. You two can be co-leaders or whatever. You keep him in line and I'll keep you in line. All right? Good. Once this city's cleared of Rayn's crocadogs, we're outta here. And nothing against you, but if we never see each other again, it'll be too soon."

"Right back at you, Baroness."

* * *

A week later, Cutteria had mostly recovered from the injuries of going against Rayn and was governing Kras City as its first Lady. She would have been a Baroness like Ashelin if Kras City was not under the ruling power of Haven City, but she didn't like such titles. Of course, the power was not all hers. Lord Razer controlled this city right alongside her, and though he could not do everything he envisioned for Kras City, he was just happy to be alive and in charge and not in a skimpy maid outfit anymore.

Keira and Jak stuck around longer than the rest of their entourage, who were all too eager to get out of town. Even Daxter didn't want to stay longer than he had to because he believed Razer might arrange for something bad to happen to him now that that man was in charge. Keira just seemed to want to check up on Cutteria whereas Jak may have been keeping an eye on the criminals while minding his lady's wishes. Hero duties in this crazy world had to be performed by someone, so Cutteria didn't mind. Razer, on the other hand, would prefer the duo disappear.

Cutteria didn't like that the lawlessness that had ruled Kras City had to come to an end, but it was better this way. At least she could have her family again. At the same time, as she stood there beside Razer and Shiv with Jak and Keira preparing to return to Haven City, she realized her family was expanding to include people she never thought would be in it.

"Bye, Cutteria," Keira called as the Lord and Lady of Kras watched her ascend in her hover car with Jak at the wheel. "Don't forget to invite us to the wedding, all right?"

The dark-haired woman smiled and looked at the ring on her finger. "I won't."

* * *

_A/N: Holy cow! This was longer than I expected it to be. Well, what did you think of this 'little' story? Please tell me without flaming or being rude. Thanks for reading my tales with the crack-pairing of Shiv with a female Cutter, and have a wonderful day._


End file.
